A Truly Upgradable Notebook? The NexDock Is A Step In That Direction

One of the things that many people love about PCs is the fact that they are upgradeable and modular. The ability to swap in and out parts at will is one of the platform’s biggest selling points. Unlike their desktop brethren, notebooks have never been as upgradable, but the NexDock is an interesting step in that direction.

To be clear, the NexDock is not as powerful as a traditional PC or even most notebooks, but it does provide an affordable alternative to traditional notebooks and could serve as the basis of a truly modular notebook.

The original NexDock came out last year and cost $119. That price tag got you a screen, keyboard, and battery. The price was so low because the actual computing power had to be provided by an outside source such as a smartphone or Intel’s Compute Stick. While obviously not the notebook for everyone, it was an interesting piece of hardware for those who wanted a budget notebook. The biggest problem was that whichever device was used to add computer power had to be placed on the back of the display. There was simply no place within the casing for the components.

The newest iteration of the NexDock looks like it’s going to address that problem by adding a slot for Intel’s Compute Card. The Compute Card is about the size of a credit card and features a Kaby Lake processor, RAM, hard drive space, and WiFi connectivity. If in the future, you ever want to upgrade the device then all you have to do is insert a more powerful Compute Card into the slot.

This isn’t likely to replace traditional notebooks anytime soon, but the technology has plenty of potential. It remains to be seen how successful the NexDock is, but the successful Indiegogo campaign illustrates that there is a desire for the hardware.

Eric is an avid tech junkie, gamer, and comic fan. When he's not working on his PC, you'll find him at your local comic book shop.